Welding rod box



July 4,1944. BRINKER 2,352,685

' WELDING ROD BOX Filed May 17, 1943 Patented July 4, 1944 UNITED STATES PATENT o FlcE j WELDING ROD Box Joseph M. Brinken'Baltimore, Md., a'ssignor of one-half to Michael Podgurski, Baltimore, Md.

Application May 17, 1943, Serial 1N0. 487,369 5 Claims. (circa-'16 This invention relates to boxes, and more particularly to supply boxes to' be used by workman who must have their hands free in order to perform their specific task and who continuously move from place to place as the work progresses.

In modern shipbuilding practice, substantially all of the parts of the boat are assembled by means of welded joints. This necessitates a vast number of welders scattered over the ship and upon scaffolding erected along the sides of the hull. These men must clamber up and down the scaffold and carry with them their Welding tools anda supply of rods of welding metal.

The rod is used until just a short stub several inches in length is left that is too short for the welder to use. These butts represent a substan-' tial amount of metal in the aggregate, and may be melted down to form new rods if saved. To drop them on the deck or scaffold for futurecollection presents a hazard to the workmen, as the rods are round and will roll if stepped upon and may cause serious injury.

The object of the present invention is to provide a box which can be conveniently carried by a welder as he works and in which a supply of welding rods may be kept within easy reach of his hand, the box also serving as a depository for the rod butts.

Another object of the invention is to provide such a box having separate compartments for the new rods and butts, the new rod compartment being so arranged as to permit the rods to feed singly to a point where they may be removed by the welder.

A further object is the provision of openings communicating with the respective compartments, the openings being closed by companion closures which operate simultaneously to uncover or cover the openings, so that when the butt compartment is opened for emptying, the new rod compartment is likewise opened for the insertion of a fresh supply of rods, and when.

the new rod door is closed the butt compartment is also closed.

Other objects will become apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the drawing which accompanies and forms a part of this specification, and in which like characters of reference are applied to identical parts throughout.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a box incorporating the principles of the present invention;

Figure 2 is a verticallongitudinal sectional view taken on'the line 2-2 ofFigure 1; and,

Figure 3 is a vertical transverse section taken on'theline 3-3 of Figure 1. I

Referring to the drawing in detail, the invention consists of a substantially rectangular box I having upstanding ears, 2 and 3 provided with slots or openings, 4 to which ,a carrying strap 5 may be attached. Strap 5 may be sufficiently long to sling the box from the shoulder or it may be provided with a ring 6 by'means of which the box may be attached to a snap fastener carried on the belt, or by another strap hung from the shoulder of the welder.- :Strips "l of wood or other insulating material are secured to the bottom of the box extending across either end and form supports upon which thebox may rest when the welder desiresto place it on the deck or scaffold. These strips are of insulating maaterial to prevent the danger of short circuits in the event thatlthe box should contact a naked welding cable. a

The interior of the box isdivided into two compartments by means of a diagonally positioned partition 8, which .iscoextensive with the length of the box and extends from the upper rear edge 9 tothe lowerforward edge It. This provides a new welding rod compartment, I l forward of, and above, the jpartitionB, and abuttcompartment I2 to the rear of, and below the partition. The inclined partition not only separates the box into two compartments, but by forming a sloping wall for the new rod compartment makes this compartment, in effect, a selffeeding hopper which will keep the rods moving toward the lower forward edge of the box.

The front [3 terminates short of the bottom of the box leaving a narrow slot l4 extending the full width of the box. Slot I4 is slightly greater in height than the diameter of one of the welding rods in order to permit the rods to pass through the slot freely, but not high enough to allow more than one rod to pass through at a time. The bottom of the box is bent downwardly and then curved upwardly at its forward edge to form a trough I5, the trough being positioned outside of the box and at the base of the inclined partition 8 to receive and hold the rods as they pass through the slot I4. The trough, bottom and front of the box, and partition 8 are all cut away midway between the ends of the box at their point of juncture, so that the trough is discontinuous and an arcuate opening I6 is provided to permit the gloved hand of the welder to readily grasp and remove the rod which has dropped down into the trough. As the rod is removed another rod will pass through the slot and fall into the trough. Therefore, as long as a supply of rods remains in the box, a rod will always be lying in the trough ready for the welder.

The upper central portion of the back wall is pressed outward beyond the top to provide an open inclined chute l1 communicating with the butt compartment I2. The short, stub or putt ends of the welding rods may be dropped into the chute I! and will fall into the butt compartment l2 where they will be carried until such time as it is desired to empty the box.

At one end the box is provided with two openings' I8 and I9 located on opposite sides of the partition 8, the opening l8 giving access to the new rod compartment II, and the opening l9 communicating with the butt compartment 12. A closure member 20 is pivoted to the end of the box, as at 2|, midway between the openings. On either side of the pivotal point 2! the closure member is enlarged, forming disk-like members 22 and 23, the member 2-2 covering and closing the opening l8, and the member 23 covering the opening l9. The closure may be swung about its pivot 2| to uncover both of the openings so that the compartment 12 may be emptied of the accumulated butts, and a fresh supply of new welding rods may be put into the compartment H. When the new rods are put into the compartment they will gravitate down into proper position and one rod will pass through the opening to lie in the trough ready 'foruse.

Although a preferred and practical embodiment of the invention has been described in the above and shown on the accompanying drawing, it will be understood to those skilled in the art to which the invention appertains that many changes may be made from the precise structure shown without departing from the spirit of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. In a box for holding a supply of welding rods, an inclined partition within said box forming with the upper part of said box a hopper for welding rods and with the lower portion of said box a compartment for used butts of said rods, the front of said box having an elongated slot near its lower edge and adjacent to the lower end of said partition, a trough outside the box and adjacent said slot to receive and hold a single welding rod, one end of said box having companion openings communicating respectively with the hopper and said butt compartment, and a closure member adapted to simultaneously cover and uncover both said openings.

2. In a box for holding a supply of welding rods, an inclined partition within said box forming with the upper part of said box a hopper for welding rods and with the lower portion of said box a compartment for used butts of said rods, a chute opening in the plane of the top of said box providing an entry to said butt compartment, the front of said box having an elongated slot near its lower edge and adjacent the lower end of said partition, a trough outside the box and adjacent said slot to receive and hold a single welding rod, one end of said box having companion openings communicating respectively with the hopper and said butt compartment and a closure member adapted to simultaneously cover and uncover both of said openings.

3. In a device as claimed in claim 2, said trough having an intermediate cut away portion forming a fingerhold to permit grasping the rod in said trough.

4. In a device as claimed in claim 2, said trough having an intermediate cut away portion forming a fingerhold to permit grasping the rod in said trough, and a strap secured to said box by means of which the said box may be carried.

5. Box for holding a supply of welding rods having an interior inclined partition forming with the upper part of said box a hopper for welding rods and with a lower portion of said box a compartment for used butts of said rods, the front of said box having an elongated slot near its lower edge adjacent the lower end of said partition, a trough outside the box and adjacent said slot to receive and hold a single welding rod discharged from said hopper, said hopper and said compartment opening endwise at one end of said box and a closure member adapted to commonly cover and uncover both said openings.

JOSEPH M. BRINKER. 

